This CD offers a fine set of Sibelius’ orchestral works. While it seems odd to call a collection that doesn’t include any of his symphonies “The Best of Sibelius”, the current program is well planned and quite engaging. Vladimir Ashkenazy and the Philharmonia perform Finlandia with plenty of growling brass and high energy. In the Karelia suite, Ashkenazy captures the outward celebration and inner contemplation beautifully, while his Valse triste is painfully ecstatic. Horst Stein’s Kalevala Legends is the prize of this collection. Stein, a masterful Sibelius interpreter, vividly recreates the fantastic world of this music. The strings are appropriately misty in the opening of Lemminkainen and the Maidens of the Island, where they are soon joined by dancing woodwinds and piercing brass. Stein’s Swan of Tuonela emerges from the waters like the Creature from the Black Lagoon, and he expertly portrays both the drama of Lemminkainen in Tuonela, and the celebration of Lemminkainen’s Return. The Suisse Romande Orchestra has this score down pat, and all sections (particularly the winds) play with lively abandon. Decca’s sound overall is spacious yet well detailed, with slightly more clarity in the later digital recordings for Ashkenazy. [Editor’s Note: The music on this disc is also available as a Decca “twofer” in the USA.]
